After The Soft And Cute Beauty Marries The Wolf King - Chapter 3

 

The journey to the grassland is distant, and in the blink of an eye, three days have passed.

 

“How much longer?” During a rest, Xie Zhiqing asked, “I remember my father said it took you only seven days to travel from the grassland.”

 

Lang Sa replied, “It’s different. At that time, I was in a hurry, riding fast day and night to come here. With our current pace, it will take about ten more days to arrive.”

 

Xie Zhiqing suggested, “We can also ride fast and not worry too much about me.”

 

“No problem. The scenery along this road is beautiful. We can enjoy the journey back.”

 

An Yu is a small country where people live by farming and lead peaceful and joyful lives. As a prince, Xie Zhiqing rarely gets the chance to leave the imperial city. This time, he’s happy to explore the landscapes along the way.

 

After spending a couple of days together, Xie Zhiqing and Lang Sa gradually became more familiar, and their conversations became less guarded.

 

The Wolf King… doesn’t seem as terrifying as the legends say, Xie Zhiqing thought.

 

After a break, the group continued their journey. However, after only a few steps, Xie Zhiqing suddenly urgently called for a stop.

 

“What’s wrong?” Lang Sa dismounted and approached him, asking.

 

Xie Zhiqing got off the carriage and exclaimed anxiously, “I’ve lost my pendant! It’s in the shape of a rabbit!”

 

It was given to him by his second elder brother before leaving the palace. He had turned it into a pendant and attached it to his belt yesterday.

 

“It was there just during the rest!” Xie Zhiqing was extremely anxious. “It might have fallen somewhere. I’ll go look for it!”

 

Lang Sa stopped him and said, “This is a windy area, and you might catch a cold. Go back into the carriage. I’ll help you look.”

 

Saying that, he called a few attendants and carefully described the appearance of the rabbit pendant.

 

The group immediately began searching, with one attendant even lifting up patches of grass to see if anything was hidden beneath.

 

Xie Zhiqing thought…

 

While being worried about the lost item, he found himself amused by the scene that unfolded.

 

Lang Sa seemed to share his sentiment and returned to the carriage after searching, muttering, “These people have no sense.”

 

The small rabbit pendant was ultimately found in Lang Sa’s clothes.

 

Xie Zhiqing held the small rabbit tightly in his hand and affectionately touched it. He dared not attach it to his belt again, choosing to hold it continuously and only letting go when absolutely necessary.

 

“Do you really like rabbits?” Lang Sa took the rabbit-shaped jade pendant from his hand and looked at the sunlight outside the window. “It’s indeed cute.”

 

Xie Zhiqing chuckled and said, “I bought this with my second elder brother when we, um, sneaked out of the palace together last time.”

 

Lang Sa handed the item back to Xie Zhiqing, commenting, “You two have a close relationship.”

 

Xie Zhiqing nodded repeatedly. “My second elder brother and I are twins, so we’re naturally closer than ordinary siblings. And also… he’s not in good health, and his mobility is limited. We often spend time together, so our bond naturally grew stronger.”

 

Lang Sa pondered and said, “So, you’re twins.”

 

“Yes! Don’t you think we look alike?” Xie Zhiqing touched his face. “We looked exactly the same when we were younger. We only started looking a bit different later on.”

 

Lang Sa wasn’t really paying attention to what Xie Zhiqing’s second elder brother looked like. He offered a vague response, swiftly changing the topic. “Oh, you two are twins.”

 

Where would Lang Sa pay attention to Xie Zhiqing’s second older brother’s appearance? He casually replied, changing the subject, “Do you really like rabbits? When we get back to the grassland, I’ll catch one and give it to you.”

 

Xie Zhiqing happily agreed, “Okay!”

 

But then, he felt something was off.

 

Nervously, he grabbed Lang Sa’s sleeve and asked, “You, you’re not catching rabbits to roast and eat, are you?”

 

Lang Sa stroked his chin, “Roasting them is indeed delicious. You don’t like it? Well, we can steam it then.”

 

Before he finished speaking, he chuckled to himself. He knocked on Xie Zhiqing’s head and said, not unkindly, “I’m getting you one to raise as a pet, who said we have to eat it?”

 

Xie Zhiqing responded with an “Oh.”

 

Feeling relieved, he smiled at Lang Sa and said innocently, “That’s good, that’s good.”

 

*

 

The journey continued without any more delays. Ten days later, Xie Zhiqing finally arrived at the grassland.

 

Lang Sa led him off the carriage and showed him the scenery before them.

 

In front of them spread an expansive grassland, with the view of lush green stretching beyond the line of sight, as if the golden sunlight had coated everything around in its warm glow.

 

There were cows nearby, sheep as well, and of course… wolves.

 

Standing a few hundred meters away from them was a wolf. The distance made it appear as a small shadow, yet its intense aura of danger remained palpable even from afar.

 

The wolf stood still, gazing in Xie Zhiqing’s direction.

 

Perhaps due to its independent nature or maybe because it was the alpha of a small wolf pack, during this time, no other wolf dared to approach it, all of them keeping a wide berth.

 

The wolf remained standing in the distance, unmoving, staring at Xie Zhiqing and Lang Sa.

 

“Are you scared?” Lang Sa turned to Xie Zhiqing and asked, “If you want, I can call it over to greet you. Of course, if you’re afraid, we can save it for another time. After all, there’s plenty of time ahead.”

 

Terrified, Xie Zhiqing’s fingers were practically twisted into knots as he clung to Lang Sa’s sleeve.

 

Indeed, there was plenty of time ahead, that was true, but, but…

 

“I-I’m not scared,” Xie Zhiqing trembled, “I’m not scared.”

 

Lang Sa patted his head, sheltering him behind him, then whistled into the distance.

 

Xie Zhiqing was still scared; he cowered behind Lang Sa, only daring to expose one eye to peek at the approaching wolf.

 

The wolf’s speed was incredible; it arrived before them in an instant.

 

Lang Sa used one hand to hold Xie Zhiqing and stood in the middle, creating a barrier between the wolf and him.

 

Lang Sa patted the wolf’s forehead with a lively motion, not merely greeting it but playing with it.

 

“It insists that you pat its head,” Lang Sa turned around, somewhat helpless. “Finally meeting you, it’s too excited.”

 

“Meeting me? Excited?” Xie Zhiqing couldn’t understand. He poked his head out again, locking eyes with the approaching wolf, and quickly retreated behind Lang Sa in fright.

 

Lang Sa laughed heartily, pushing its head away. “Alright, alright, don’t act cute. Go away for now! Once Xiaoching gets used to this place, you can come back.”

 

The wolf was indeed sent away like this by Lang Sa. As it left, its pace slowed considerably, and it turned to look back every two or three steps.

 

Xie Zhiqing couldn’t help but steal glances at it. Perhaps it was just his imagination, but he felt a hint of grievance on the wolf’s face.

 

“It’s well-behaved…” Xie Zhiqing touched his face and asked Lang Sa, “Because you’re the Wolf King, they all listen to you, is that how it is?”

 

Lang Sa pondered for a moment and said, “If we’re talking about other wolves, yes, but not the one just now.”

 

Before Lang Sa could finish speaking, the wolf had halted its steps, its pointed ears perked even more, unabashedly eavesdropping on the conversation behind them.

 

“It understands language and can think independently. You can think of it as a child of around ten years old, just without the ability to speak,” Lang Sa continued, “It helps me manage this non-transformed wolf pack, very clever.”

 

“Wow, amazing! Are all wolves this smart?” Xie Zhiqing marveled.

 

“No, it’s an exception. It’s smart because—”

 

Before Lang Sa could finish, the wolf had run a few steps forward again and bumped into him, urging him to pay attention.

 

Lang Sa laughed a few times, caught it, and rubbed its back vigorously. The wolf raised its front paws, crossing over Lang Sa’s body to get a better look at Xie Zhiqing.

 

“One side, don’t you know how heavy you are?” Lang Sa pushed it away disdainfully, then held its head to keep it from approaching again. He continued his explanation, “It’s intelligent because… you can understand it as a part of me.”

 

“A part?” Xie Zhiqing widened his eyes.

 

“Not all wolves can be intelligent like it. Most of them are half-human and half-wolf because they can’t separate the beastly aspect from their bodies.” Lang Sa explained, “Only a few can fully transform, completely separating the animalistic part and presenting in human form.”

 

Saying that, Lang Sa patted the wolf under his hand and introduced it formally, “Its name is Ate, a separated form of transformation from me. So, you can think of it as a part of me.”

 

Ate used its head to nudge Lang Sa’s hand away and turned its attention toward Xie Zhiqing, who was being cautious, his tail starting to wag.

 

Lang Sa, looking on, shook his head and said to Xie Zhiqing, “Originally, I wanted to take you to meet my parents first, but Ate insists on showing you the new house first.”

 

Xie Zhiqing immediately stiffened, “N-New… house…?”

 

Oops, he had spent too many days on the road, and he had forgotten that he was here for a marriage proposal!

 

Embarrassment washed over him again.

 

“Oh, oh…” Xie Zhiqing mumbled, “Then, then let’s go.”

 

He tried to laugh it off, “Go, go, go see the place to sleep, hahaha!”

 

Lang Sa patted his head and finally led him into the vast and boundless grassland.

 

Ate truly acted as a guide wolf. It slowed its pace, occasionally looking back to see if they were keeping up. It walked, stopped, and looked back each time, its gaze fixed on Xie Zhiqing.

 

Despite its connection with Lang Sa’s transformed state, Xie Zhiqing still

 

couldn’t completely quell the fear in his heart. Whenever Ate approached, he would subtly move away, edging closer to Lang Sa’s side.

 

Unconsciously, he bumped into Lang Sa’s shoulder.

 

Lang Sa turned to look at him and pushed Ate away again. He then reached out, attempting to loop his arm around Xie Zhiqing’s shoulder to lead him, but his hand hesitated, ultimately not coming down.

 

Finally, he simply said, “If you’re scared, just hold on to me.”

 

He extended a corner of his sleeve toward Xie Zhiqing.

 

“I’ll protect you, don’t be afraid.”